Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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320. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the number of persons on HAP by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23702/21]

Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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322. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the cost of supporting HAP; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23704/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 320 and 322 together.

The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a form of social housing support for people who have a long-term housing need. In order for a household to qualify for HAP, they must first be assessed as eligible for social housing support by their local authority. Any household assessed as eligible for social housing is immediately eligible for HAP and those households must source their own accommodation in the private rental sector.

The table below shows the number of households at the end of 2020, broken down by local authority, who are in receipt of HAP support.

*The DRHE is operating the HAP Homeless Place Finder Service on behalf of the four Dublin local authorities.

The cost of supporting the HAP Scheme to the Exchequer is outlined in the table below

Budget 2021 increased the Exchequer funding for the HAP scheme to €558 million. This will allow for the continued support of existing HAP households and also enable an additional 15,000 households to be supported by HAP in 2021.